Kars

With its pastel-coloured stone buildings dating from the 19th-century Russian occupation, and its well-organised grid plan, Kars looks like a slice of Russia teleported to northeastern Anatolia. And the city's mix of influences – Kurdish, Azeri, Turkmen, Turkish and Russian – adds to its distinct feel. No wonder it provided the setting for Turkish author Orhan Pamuk's acclaimed novel Kar (Snow).

Kars is usually regarded as a base for visiting the ruins at Ani, but it's worth spending time exploring its sights, soaking up the lively vibe (to which the large Kafkas University contributes significantly), and sampling some of the excellent local cuisine. It also makes a convenient base for exploring remote villages and sights in the surrounding steppe.

Explore Kars

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Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Kars.

  • Fortress

    Kars Castle

    Dating from at least 1153, Kars Castle' s hefty, dark-stone walls crown the craggy ridge that dominates the city-centre's northern edge, fronted by a…

  • Museum

    Kafkaz Cephesi Harp Tarihi Müzesi

    This new museum specialising in early 20th-century history is hosted in the heavy arches of an 1803 bastion, a surviving fragment of vast ramparts that…

  • Mosque

    Evliya Camii

    With an especially attractive north facade, the 16th-century 'Mosque of Saints' was built to commemmorate the 11th-century saint Hasan-i Harakani who…

  • Museum

    Kars Culture & Art Association

    The address is an unpromising paint shop ('Yeni Akçay Kol. Şir.'). However, if you can find him in, the shop's owner is local historian Vedat Akçayöz who…

  • Mosque

    Kümbet Camii

    Below Kars Castle, the imposing, basalt Kümbet Camii was built as a church between 932 and 937 when Kars was (briefly) capital of the Bagratuni kingdom of…

  • Museum

    Gazi Ahmet Muhtar Paşa Kultur Evi

    One of Kars' most attractive old homes hosts a beautifully presented but all-in-Turkish introduction to Gazi Ahmet Muhtar Paşa, a flamboyantly…

  • Museum

    Kars Museum

    Northeast of the centre, just off the road to Ani, the city museum has cultural and archaeological exhibits stretching back to the early Bronze Age,…

  • Architecture

    Old Governor's Mansion

    Facing a pretty little garden surrounded by further century-old buildings, this proud 1883 mansion was where the 1921 Treaty of Kars was signed, settling…

  • Mosque

    Ulu Camii

    For a great vantage point to soak up the main sights of historic Kars in a single visual sweep, it's hard to beat the forecourt of this 17th-century…

  • Mosque

    Fethiye Camii

    This active mosque started life as a 19th-century Russian church, but now sports twin minarets instead of its original onion domes. It's a curious if…

  • Bridge

    Taş Köprü

    This attractive basalt bridge that spans the Kars River, below the castle, was built in 1719 replacing a 16th-century original that had been destroyed by…

  • Ruins

    Beylerbeyi Sarayı

    In 1579, Sultan Murad III's regional governor (Lala Mustafa Paşa) built an imposing palace on the southern foreslopes of Kars Castle crag. The structure…

  • Architecture

    Health Directorate Building

    On this 1907 building, thick paint somewhat mars the facade of floral motifs and mock columns built in typical Kars' Baltic (ie northern Russian) style.

  • Architecture

    Revenue Office

    A three-storey late 19th-century L-shaped building with a long, false-columned facade, this is one of the more impressive pieces of Kars' 'Baltic…

  • Hamam

    Mazlum Ağa Hamam

    Pushkin is known to have bathed at this rectangular 18th-century basalt hamam in 1829, which stands near the river below Kars Castle. These days you'll…